Torpedo-guard for vessels.



c. soKoLowsKl. TORPEDO GUARD FOR VESSELSl APPLICATIOH FILED IUNE 21|19|?.

,249,844 Mmmm 11,1%?.

@nm/vwo? y maffia? 5076005031765, l www lill - CHARLESSOKOLOWSK; FELIZABETH, NEW` JERSEY.1

i `'rossana-1snaai) ron vins-sets."

To all fio/1.0m t may concern! Be it lcnoivn that l, Ci-iinLiis llnionand State ofNeiv Je1'sey,^have` ii`ivented certain new and usefullinprovements inTorpedo-Guards for Vessels,` `of which the following isa specification.

'l`he present invention relates i to certain neu7 and usefulimprovements in means for protecting vessels at seafroin attack byautomobile torpedoes, and has for its `general object the provision cfatorpedo guard adapted for effecting the explosionof a torpedo on comingin contact ivith the guard at a safe distance outboard from thevessel@ther objects will appear andbe better j Soiioitoivsni, a citizen of theRepublic'of Russia, and resident of Elizabeth, inthe `county "of"understood froin that embodiment of my in-" vention of which thefollowing is a specification, reference being had to the accompanyingdrawings forming part hereof, and in Which- Figure l is a sideelevational view of a vessel, showing my invention applied thereto.

Fig. 2 is a top plan vievv ofva portion of one side of a vessel showingthe guard connected thereto.

Fig. 3 is a detail perspective view of one of the frame sections ofwhich the guard is forined, and

Fig. el is a fragmentary view of one of the frame sections, showing aportion of a forni of Wire netting connected thereto.

ln the drawings c designates a vessel of ordinary construction, and bdesignates iny improved guard. or shield preferably constructed toprotect the hull frein torpedo attack. ln the present instance, I haveshown the guard constructed in the form of submerged nets which extendoutboard from the opposite sides of the vessels hull. The guards areyieldingly held in spaced relation to the sides of the vessel by beinginounted on the outer end of a plurality of booms or arrns 5 whichproject outwardly frein the vessels sides and are disposed substantiallyat the lreel and Water line thereof. llhese arms are secured to thesides of the vessel in any suitable manner, as, for instance, by havingtheir inner or flanged ends t3 bolted to the vessels sides, as shown.

"lhe guards extend substantially the full length of the vessels sidesand comprise a plurality of frame sections 7, each of which is providedWith a Wire netting 8 formed of any suitable mesh adapted for thepurpose.

1 Silefiatn of LettersjPatent. j Pzttlltd D603.` 11, 19179.iippi'icandn'aiea June 21, 1917. semi No. 176,250.

It is thought that the forni of netting shown in Fig. 4 could beadmirably adapted for guar(` s of this kind"because its flexibilitycould be materially"utilized in arresting the speed of the torpedo whenit strikes the net. The fraine sections are eachperforated, `as atl), sothat they inay be slidably inounted on the arms 5, and `to secure thesections on the arins and to liinit their outward inovew inentitavill benoted that the ends of the arnis are` provided vWith nuts 10, against jAs shown which` the frame sections abut. in Fig. '2, the traine sectionsare inounted onthe arins 5, sothat the sections overlap.

Coil springs 1l are mounted on the arnis 5,

and these springs have their ends engaging the flanged portions of thearins and the in nei' faces of the frame .sections for yieldinglyholding the fraine sections in spaced relation to the sides of the hulland against the nuts l0 on the ends of the arins. It is obvious that byforming the net of a plurality of franie sections, should any one of thesections becoine dainaged it inay be readily removed and replaced byunsere-iving the nuts 10 on the ends of the arnis 5. To liinit theinward nioveinent of the frame sections, each of the sections isprovided With a plurality of projections 1Q. These projections areprovided on the inner face of the frame sections and are arranged sothat their ends contact With the side of the hull when the frainesections have been depressed by an automobile torpedo striking the net.

Should the torpedo explode when it has been engaged by the net, it isobvious that it Will explode at such a distance from the hull of thevessel that it would not do the serious damage that Would occur if thetorpedo exploded directly against the side of the vessel; it being Wellknown that explosions in the Water at a short distance from the vesselcause very little, if any, in jury to the vessel.

To prevent injury to the shield or nets when the vessel is being loadedor unloaded from barges or the like, a guard rail lll is provided. Thisrail extends longitudinally of the ship and projects outboard therefroma slight distance beyond the torpedo guard as shovvn in Fig. 2. The railis secured to the hull by means of a plurality of braces 15, which arebolted to the vessels sides and disposed above the Water line, asclearly shown in Fig. l.

It will be obvious that various modifications might be made in theapparatus described herein, and in the construction and arrangement ofparts, without departing from the spirit of my invention.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire to secureIby Letters Patent of the United States isl. A torpedo guard for vessels,comprising a plurality of arms connected to the outer surface of thevessels sides and eXtending outwardly therefrom, a net comprising aplurality of. overlapping sections slidably mounted on said arms,springs mounted on the armsand engaging the overlapping portions of saidsections and means mounted on the inner face of said sections andarranged for limiting the inward movement of said sections substantiallyas described.

2. A torpedo guard for vessels, comprising a plurality of arms connectedto the outer surface of tlie vessels sides and 'eX- tending outwardlytherefrom, a plurality ofl overlapping frame sections slidably ing aplurality of arms connected to the outer surface of the vessels sidesand extending outwardly therefrom, a plurality of frame sectionsslidably mounted on said arms, nets mounted on said frame sections,springs mounted on said arms and engaging the said sections foryieldingly resisting the inward movement of said sections and aplurality of projections mounted on the inner face of said framesections and arranged for limiting the inner movement of said sectionswhen depressed, substantially as described.

Signed at New York in the county of New York and State of New York this15th day of June A. D. 1917.

CHARLES SOKOLOVVSKI.

Copies oi this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents.

. Washington, D. C.

